5 Practical Ways to Prioritise Mental Health at Work

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2019 “15% of working-age adults were estimated to have a mental disorder” (World Health Organization, 2024). Therefore, mental health at work is a rising concern and should be a strong focus for all businesses. Prioritising mental health at work is extremely beneficial to a business and its workers and can result in higher wellbeing, productivity, engagement and retention. There are a variety of simple ways that managers can make mental health at work a priority such as creating a positive, open workplace culture and providing their employees with easy access to support services. This blog will discuss five practical ways that employers can prioritise mental health at work and why this is crucial for long-term productivity and workplace culture.

1. Encourage Open Communication

The first practical tool to prioritise mental health at work is creating a space for and encouraging open communication. Managers should foster a workplace environment where employees feel safe speaking up, whether that’s about issues at work or personal issues (if they are comfortable to and would like someone to speak to about this). A good way to do this is to organise regular check-ins with staff, especially during busy and peak periods. Encouraging open communication also means showing it back, therefore managers should set an example of this by remaining transparent with their employees, which also demonstrates an approachable leadership style. Implementing this can help to reduce the stigma around mental health conversations and help people feel more comfortable discussing these things if they wish to.

2. Promote Work-Life Balance

It is also important to promote a healthy work-life balance that allows for time away from work and to focus on wellbeing. Employers can cultivate this amongst their workplaces in many ways, for example encouraging reasonable workloads and regular breaks. According to Beyond Blue, “many Australians spend a third of their lives at work” (Beyond Blue, 2026), therefore, it is important for workplaces to create a healthy, balanced environment for good mental health at work.

This can be done in multiple ways, such as:

• Discussing flexible work arrangements – such as working from home if needed.
• Different leave options – whether this is annual leave or mental health days.

Workplaces should also emphasise the importance of disconnecting outside of work hours, leaving the work laptop and phone at work and not bringing this home. In Australia, we have ‘the right to disconnect’ where an employee has the “right to refuse employer or third-party contact outside working hours” (Fair Work Ombudsman, 2025). Hence, this assists in prioritising mental health at work by not transitioning any stress to employees’ personal lives.

3. Provide Access to Support Services

To prioritise mental health at work, workplaces should offer easy access to different support services that can help those going through any time of mental health or emotional hardship. One of the best ways this can be done is by providing an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to workers. An EAP service provides FREE counselling sessions to employees, that are completely confidential and can be conducted face-to-face or virtually. EAP is short term, solution-focused counselling. The sessions are designed to be informal, friendly, and tailored to your specific needs. At Recovery Partners, we offer EAP Services for businesses looking to implement this in their workplace, with confidential sessions conducted by registered psychologists.

4. Train Leaders and Managers

Another practical way workplaces can prioritise mental health at work is by providing training to leaders and managers on all things mental health and wellbeing related. It is important for managers to be able to recognise signs of stress, burnout or psychosocial risks, and undertake supportive conversations with employees when needed. Being trained to address mental health and signs of stress at work is crucial for managers in creating a psychologically safe team. For example, a way to provide this training to leaders can be done through our SafeMinds Mental Health Awareness Training at Recovery Partners. This program offers a variety of training topics delivered by our experienced team of registered psychologists. For example, Mental Health Awareness, Stress Management, Emotional Intelligence, Psychological Injury Prevention and Manager Skills and providing Feedback. SafeMinds training can be relevant for both managers and employees, to understand signs and of poor mental health at work.

5. Create a Positive Workplace Culture

The fifth and final way to prioritise mental health at work is by cultivating a positive workplace culture. Workplace culture involves the “values, attitudes and beliefs that people in your workplace share” (NSW Government. 2023). Therefore, having employee mental health as an important value builds a healthy workplace culture. Creating a positive workplace culture for mental health at work means prioritising initiatives and practices that make a workplace a great place to work. Leaders and managers can implement a variety of these, such as:

• Encouraging connection and team engagement – through social engagements, team building/bonding activities and regular team catch ups like lunches or morning teas.
• Building an inclusive and supportive environment – employees should feel safe to speak up about any concerns, particularly with management and should not be afraid to ask for help or assistance when needed.
• Encourage Regular Breaks and Movement – breaks away from work and the desk should be allowed throughout the day, and employees should leave on time at the end of the day.
• Regularly Review Workplace Psychosocial Risks – these should be consistently reviewed, and controls should be implemented to address any gaps.